New Projects?

I have some new project ideas on the horizon. I'm not sure which I'll choose to go with first. But here are some possibilities:

I love working on 18" My Twinn dolls. My last project was a real learning experience. But I have a few Twinns still waiting about for their better versions. Among them, these three, some of whom really need help.
 



I got the 18" Danielle a few years back, and at which time she had beautiful hazel eyes. Of course they faded and went cloudy, so I replaced them with a pair of light green eyes I happened to have on hand (probably my very first My Twinn eye swap).

I don't really like the color on her though; they look kind of fake to me. Plus her eyes seem to disappear with such a light shade. I want to give her a brighter, or more intense shade and better eye lashes too. Maybe even a repaint. Yeah, probably a repaint. Her brows are too light and undefined.
 

Ariel was my first My Twinn doll ever. She was really pretty when I got her.

But her hazel eyes faded, so I traded them for a pair of light hazel-green eyes, which turned purple. Now they match her dress. Yeah, she really needs new eyes.
 



And because I never really liked her eyebrows, Ariel was also my very first ever try at a doll repaint. Lol, hopefully my skill has improved. I guess I need to update her face to prove it. :)

Because even before her eyes were purple, she wasn't quite right. She looked perpetually surprised. Them eyebrows needed work. The originals might have been better. . .

I got this 18" Wendi on sale when My Twinn was going out of business. She's still beautiful and her eyes are still blue. They might be slightly paler than they used to be (maybe) but overall they have fared better than my other My Twinn doll eyes.
 

Wendi's still nearly perfect, but to be honest, I never felt her auburn or dark red hair went well with the rest of her coloring. I've always thought she would look good as a brunette--or maybe a pale blond. I'd probably have to update her eyebrows then too.

I also have these cute, classic Harmony Club dolls.

I don't think Harmony Club offers either of these sculpts anymore, but they were once part of their main stock. I believe these dolls' original names were Cameron and Melody, but they always gave me a kind of Luke and Leia vibe. So I am thinking of remaking them as Star Wars heroes Luke Skywalker and Leia Organa. How much fun will that be?

Here's another picture of them from a couple of years ago. Actually, now that I think of it, that's another Melody, one whom I remade completely and then sold. Glad I had two.
 


Then I have these three little sweethearts with some unhappy eye issues. These are retired Classmates dolls from Berenguer.
 

I actually have a number of these dolls, and every one of them has red eyes or turning-red eyes. Something about the way they were orginally made. . . They also have joint problems, in that the elastic holding the limbs to the body tends to snap or just give out after a while, so they begin to lose arms and legs over time.

These problems are a shame because otherwise these dolls are adorable in every way. They have the cutest faces, all of them.
 

There are a than the three I show here, though I'm not sure how many. At one point, I was trying to collect all of them. But over time, even the more common sculpts became harder and harder to find, so I sort of gave up.

But I haven't given up on restoring these dolls and have been planning to do so for a while. This group would be a little more involved than the other two above because they have capsule/ sleep eyes, and very squishy vinyl which does not hold up well when heated and trying to wrestle new eyes back in. I oughta know; I tried it once or twice with only limited success.

Also, none of the generic capsule eyes I've tried ever look as cute as the original ones with the huge irises that make them look so innocent. It would be fun to see if I could somehow get around the eye issues and bring these dolls back to life. I'd have to really be up to the challenge, but it might be worth it.

Decisions, decisions.

Comments

RagingMoon1987's picture

LOL, best of luck to you with that Ariel! That's my favorite sculpt, but it didn't look as nice in 18-inch scale. My poor Xenia looks eternally surprised too, and she did even before her eyes turned purple!
Little Raven's picture

I think you're right; Ariel 23 is so pretty and natural. 18 has to work at it a little harder. :) But this one's going to be a knockout when she's done. ;)

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